I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to material handling equipment and, more particularly, to a maneuverable, multi-position container grasping device attached to a refuse collection vehicle for handling curbside containers during collection efforts and emptying the containers at a plurality of positions relative to the vehicle charging hopper.
II. Related Art
As the world of materials handling becomes more mechanized the desire to move objects with minimal human intervention increases. This has become especially increasingly so with respect to the collection of refuse, particularly curbside collection which has been traditionally characterized by labor intensive manual loading. At a curbside there exists a need not only for devices to tip refuse containers into material receiving hoppers but also for a delivery system that can grasp containers from a range of locations relative to the collection vehicle.
Mechanized material handling devices of the class of interest to the present invention usually have a grasping device attached to a large arm or other means for lifting, moving and tipping a container or object of interest. The grasping device often has a pair of spaced and opposed mechanical arms which function to grasp and release a container by closing down and opening up as operated by one or more actuating devices, such as hydraulic cylinders. In situations where only one actuating device is used, a linkage mechanism is required to achieve dual arm movement.
Grasping devices including a single actuator and a pair of arcuate arms are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,461,608, to Boda; U.S. Pat. No. 4,708,570, to Smith et al; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,026,104, to Pickrell. Each of the devices described in these patents includes a relatively complex linkage mechanism.
Grasping devices including multiple actuators and two single member arcuate arms have been described in U.S. Reissue Pat. No. 34,292, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,227,849 and 4,872,801. In each of these patents, the arms are pivotally attached to a common support member and operated by hydraulic cylinders pivotally attached to the same support member.
A grasping device including multiple actuators and arms having multiple members is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,940, issued to Englehardt et al. In this patent, a pair of straight secondary arms are pivoted to a common support member inside a pair of angled primary arms. The secondary arms roll along the inside of the primary arms to form a hexagon as the primary arms are pushed together by hydraulic cylinders.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,092,731, issued to Jones et al, describes a grasping device including two compound (segmented) arcuate arms linked to an I-beam member operated by actuators.
The devices discussed above are designed to grasp circular objects. A device for lifting and holding containers having a plurality of basic shapes is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,401,407, to Breckenridge. Breckenridge describes a device having a pair of arms including an inner member pivoted at one end to a frame and an outer member pivoted between its ends to the second end of the inner member. A complex linkage mechanism is attached between the frame and the two members for coordinating movement of the inner and outer members. While the mechanism is functional, a mechanically simpler device for grasping containers having a plurality of shapes is desired.
PCT International Application Publication No. WO 92/01612 describes a device for grasping containers of several shapes. The described device includes oppositely disposed compound articulated arms pivotally attached to a central support member. Each arm includes an inner and an outer member curved to fit around a container and having grip padding for holding the container. In operation, the arms are moved by four actuators. However, the shape of the arms and the grip padding is a compromise, not shaped to fit snugly around the corners of a rectangular object. The corners of a rectangular object fall between the grip padding or are contacted at an angle which limits the ability of the device to manipulate rectangular objects.
A grabber device of the class usable in the combination of the present invention is further illustrated and described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/342,752, filed Nov. 21, 1994, and assigned to the same assignee, entitled xe2x80x9cCONTAINER HOLDING AND LIFTING DEVICESxe2x80x9d. The inventor in that application is Ronald E. Christenson, an inventor in the present application.
A multi-compartment vehicle for unloading and receiving the contents of corresponding multi-compartment collection receptacles is described and shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/389,097, filed Feb. 15, 1995, entitled xe2x80x9cMULTIPLE COMPARTMENT BODY FOR WASTE MATERIALSxe2x80x9d, by Ronald E. Christenson, the inventor herein, which is assigned to the same assignee as the present invention and the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference for any necessary purposes. That application describes a refuse hauling vehicle including a multi-compartment truck body and a front or side loading, fork-type lift and dump mechanism which lifts and dumps a multi-compartment collection receptacle into a multi-compartment receiving hopper of the truck body.
Other containers of the multi-compartment class are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,071,303 and 5,222,853, issued to Carson, which describe a multi-compartment collection receptacle having a plurality of dedicated compartments with corresponding locking lids. During the dumping operation, a collection receptacle compartment is positioned above a corresponding dedicated compartment in a multi-compartment vehicle and the lid is opened to release the refuse contained therein into the vehicle. A collection receptacle lifting mechanism is mounted on the vehicle body on a rail in a manner that allows it to slide along the length thereof to index or position the collection receptacle as required for unloading.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,035,563; 5,163,805; 5,205,698; and 5,303,841, issued to Mezey, illustrate side loading or front loading, multi-compartment refuse vehicles used in conjunction with corresponding multi-compartment collection receptacles or single compartment containers.
Heretofore, however, container lifting and emptying devices have not been able to selectively position a container above a plurality of compartments in a collection receptacle. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 4,401,407, issued to Breckenridge, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,026,104, issued to Pickrell, describe and show grasping devices connected to extensible boom systems which may be lifted to raise an engaged container above one position along the length of a refuse vehicle. U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,308, issued to Armando et al., describes an automatic container lifting and emptying apparatus including an extensible boom which can pivot vertically to raise an engaged container above the refuse vehicle and horizontally to pivot the container in a partial circle as it is positioned above the truck body. However, these systems have limited versatility and cannot situate the container above more than one position along the length of the truck body, even though the Armando et al. device is provided with an attached grasping device which can pivot in a circular motion at the end of the extensible boom along an axis transverse to the direction of travel of the telescoping boom.
An extensible boom system that carries a grabber device of the articulated opposed digit type with some versatility is illustrated in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/480,902, filed Jun. 8, 1995, to Ronald E. Christenson, an inventor herein, and assigned to the same assignee as the present application. That disclosure is also hereby incorporated by reference herein for any necessary purpose.
The separation of materials at the point of collection is becoming, and in the future will become an even more important consideration in the disposal of refuse. Consequently, a collection apparatus including a container lifting and emptying apparatus which can be positionally adjusted along the side of a vehicle to approach receptacles at various locations relative to the vehicle and dump the containers selectively into any one of a plurality of compartments in an attached collection receptacle or vehicle charging hopper.
It is accordingly a principal object of the invention to provide an improved material collection system.
Another object of the invention is to provide a collection system wherein either a collection receptacle container may be approached in a variety of locations, automatically lifted and emptied.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a collection system wherein the integrity of loads of segregated material is maintained.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a collection apparatus which includes container lifting and emptying apparatus for automatically unloading a container into the collection receptacle which is positionally adjustable in two directions relative to the receptacle.
Still yet another object of the invention is to provide a container lifting and emptying apparatus for unloading a container into a selected one of a plurality of receptacle compartments.
A further object of the invention is to provide an indexing container lifting and emptying apparatus with the ability to situate an engaged container above a plurality of positions along the length of a collection receptacle.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art through familiarity with the summary of the invention, detailed description, claims, and drawings herein.
By means of the present invention, there is provided a versatile, extendable seize and release, and lift and dump mechanism or system in which a grabber mechanism is provided with selected maneuverability to address and fetch curbside containers within range of a refuse truck and that is further indexable to empty the containers at several locations relative to a receiving hopper. In the detailed embodiments, this is accomplished by employing a laterally extensible telescoping boom and lift and dump arm system which, in turn, carries a container grabbing mechanism. The container grabbing mechanism is carried on and adjustable along a support arm attached at an angle which extends to the lift and dump arm so that it extends substantially horizontally alongside the charging hopper. The lift and dump arm, in turn, is carried on the telescoping boom member and retracts laterally.
The lift and dump arm is vertically pivotable with respect to the boom with the grabbing mechanism situated at any position along the horizontal support arm as it extends along parallel to the charging hopper. This allows dumping of the container at any location along the charging hopper. The extensible boom is also capable of limited tilting to increase the container tipping angle with the lift and dump arm fully raised. A fluid operated cylinder is used to position a rider member carrying the grabber along the support arm. Likewise, linear operators or actuators are used to extend and retract the extensible boom and to tilt the boom in the retracted position and to pivot the lift and dump arm of the system.
Because the grabber can be situated anywhere along the support arm, it can seize a container in a variety of locations along the charging hopper and thereafter deposit the contents of that container at any and possibly the same location with respect to a longitudinally split multi-compartment charging hopper. The support arm for the grabber remains substantially horizontally disposed throughout the operation so that the container tilts only toward the charging hopper.
The grasping function of the present invention is performed by a gripping or grabbing device having a pair of spaced, opposed arms pivotally connected to a central support member. The arms are generally shaped to entrap containers of a plurality of different geometric cross-sectional shapes, including curved, rectangular, hexagonal and others. The arms are preferably multi-segmental and pivot between an open or retracted position and a closed or grasping position by operating actuators. The inner and outer segments have shaped inner surfaces to accommodate a plurality of different geometric shapes. Each outer segment may be provided with a composite construction which includes a tip roller which contacts and urges a container of interest toward the common support member as the arms close to retain the container in place. The opposed arms are operated by coordinated pairs of linear actuators (preferably double acting hydraulic cylinders).
While the detailed embodiments are devoted to refuse trucks, the loading device of the present invention may be mounted on other vehicles including dump trucks or may even be employed as a stationary loader.